Painting chrome

Hi, I am brand new to this forum and I thought I would ask a quick question. I technically don't own a KZ jsut yet but I have the opportunity to buy an '82 KZ550 LTD for 650 dollars. It has about 23K miles on it and is in fairly good cosmetic conddition (the chrome has some decay and rust spots on it). My question is regarding the chrome.

Is there a cheap or possible do-it-yourself method of re-applying the chrome on some of the bikes plastic and metal parts?

Doing this minor thing would make the bike look so much better. Also I am wondering about a general opinion. Is $650 a good price for a bike of this model and coniditon?

I appreciate any help you can offer.




Clayton T.

Spokane Wa
Will potentially own a: 1982 KZ550 Ltd

plating is a complicated process,i do all my own polishing but as far as plating goes i leave it to the plating guys.you might be able to cleanup a lot of the parts to make them look better,but make sure to wax the parts really good afterwards to keep the rust from coming back.normally id say that price is a little steep but withgas at $3.00 a gallon youll make your money back fast.

is there specific chrome polish that would be good to pick up? What do you like to use? Also, for the parts that are rusted, what would i clean up those spots with prior to polishing? Thanks for the reply!


-C. Tupper


Spokane, Wa

acetone actually works good and it doesnt scratch,just depends on how bad your parts are.

Post edited by: wireman, at: 2006/07/24 00:31

if the rust on the chrome is not real bad good old fashioned Chrome Polish by Turtle Wax does a very nice job of cleaning those parts up - pretty cheap too.

if the parts are heavily rusted, then the about the only way to get them looking good is to have them redone by a pro.

as for the price, if it is running good, and in decent condition, then $650 isnt all that bad a price. Prices do vary by location.
Paid $500 for my 84 KZ550 two yrs ago, nonrunning (carbs gunked up) the same bike now would be closer to $750 in the same condition, and running, would bring more like a $1000-1200.

As the price of gas goes up, so does the price of used bikes (at least around here it does) its all about supply and demand. gas prices go up, demand for economical transportation goes up, supply of said transportation is limited, so the price goes up.

Good luck, and ride safe.

Another chrome cleanup tip is to scrub the chrome with crumpled aluminum foil soaked with coca-cola. I also use Turtle Wax chrome polish too.

That price is what I paid for my 650 2 years ago, and it needed some work. If this bike runs good and needs a cleaning, go for it.

www.caswellplating.com/kits/plugnplate.htm
i may try the nickel stuff unless somebody tells me
it sucks

just remember the parts need to be polished before plating thats what makes plating look good.if you dont buff the parts and make them nice smooth and shiny before plating you wont be happy with the results,everything will look dull.look up the polishing at home post.

another option is to clean the chrome by submerging it for a few days in either sugar beet molasses or evaporust. they both work the same way. both products are expensive for a single job, but you can reuse the liquid over and over (on headers, tank, fenders, gauges, etc) til it wears out.

here's before and after pics of my rear fender, using evaporust:

img291.imageshack.us/my.php?image=rustyfender01ns8.jpg

img396.imageshack.us/my.php?image=rustyfender02zq8.jpg

these are the links for the two products:

www.rustbeeter.com

www.evaporust.com

you can also buy sugar beet molasses in liquid form from some lawn care companies cause they spray it on lawns as a fertilizer.

both products work well on normal red rust. but they don't work very well on black rust (magnetite?) on the backside of your headers next to the engine. engine heat turns the red rust into a very dense black rust that just won't dissolve.

Post edited by: duncan, at: 2006/07/25 17:36